title: Dysphagia in Lewy body dementia - a clinical observational study of swallowing function by videofluoroscopic examination.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Dysphagia, which can result in aspiration pneumonia and death, is a well-known problem in patients with dementia and Parkinson's disease. There are few studies on dysphagia in patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD), especially studies objectively documenting the type of swallowing dysfunction. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the prevalence, and define the actual swallowing dysfunction according to a videofluoroscopic swallowing examination (VFSE) in patients with DLB and PDD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighty-two consecutive patients with DLB or PDD in a clinical follow-up program were asked about symptoms of dysphagia. Those experiencing dysphagia were examined with VFSE. Prevalence and type of swallowing dysfunction was recorded.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-six patients (32%) reported symptoms of dysphagia such as swallowing difficulties or coughing. Twenty-four (92%) of these had a documented swallowing dysfunction on VFSE. Eighty-eight percent suffered from pharyngeal dysfunction.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Almost all DLB or PDD patients with subjective signs of dysphagia had pathologic results on VFSE, the majority of pharyngeal type. This type of dysphagia has not been reported in DLB before. The results have clinical implications and highlight the importance of asking for and examining swallowing function to prevent complications such as aspiration.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Memory Research unit, Dept of Clinical Sciences Malmö, Lund University, Sweden. Elisabet.londos@skane.se.
authors.forename: Elisabet
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Londos
authors.forename: Oskar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Hanxsson
authors.forename: Ingrid
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Alm Hirsch
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Janneskog
authors.forename: Margareta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bülow
authors.forename: Sebastian
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Palmqvist
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003679:Deglutition / Q000502:physiology; D003680:Deglutition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D020961:Lewy Body Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010300:Parkinson Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D014742:Videodisc Recording